Never Alone
by prplemyth
Summary: A small silver owl has been watching over Annabeth since she was a child, making sure someone was always caring for her. Annabeth centric fic. Oneshot. Percabeth also.


_A/N: Well this got way more angsty than I intended. Sorry about that. But in honor of both Percabeth week (a little late) and Mark of Athena coming out on Tuesday, I thought I would write an Annabeth centric fic. Because she's my favorite and I love her a slightly worrying amount. I hope you enjoy this, and, if you did, let me know!_

* * *

She was never alone.

Annabeth didn't really want to think it through too far, but she knew someone was always watching over her or something, keeping an eye on her. She had no idea if this something was a good guy or a bad guy, though. She was seven. She was a kid still. She hadn't even gotten the hang of cursive yet. This stuff was hard.

She was curled up in a dumpster, too exhausted to keep moving. She'd hit a Cyclops over the head with her stupid little hammer enough to confuse it, but it wouldn't die, so she ran away as fast as she could and took a dive into the dumpster as fast as she could. It went away after a while, groaning and grumbling, but she hoped to something that it was gone forever.

"Someone please help me," Annabeth muttered to no one in particular, "someone help me get away from the monsters."

Something glittered next to her, a translucent, silver little owl sat itself upon what Annabeth could only guess was a pizza box.

Quickly, Annabeth backed away from it, half scared, half intrigued. "Who…Stay away!" she exclaimed. "I have a weapon!" She whipped out the hammer she kept in her belt loop and pointed it toward the owl. "You can't beat me, little owl!"

It hooted quietly, and immediately Annabeth realized it wasn't there to hurt her. "Hoo?" it questioned, tilting its little head.

"Hello?" Annabeth began, crawling toward it. "Who are you?"

In place of answering, the little owl floated toward her and landed on her shoulder, nuzzling into her shoulder and her ratty blonde hair.

"Oh," laughed Annabeth. It was the first time she'd smiled in ages.

The owl began to fly away from her, and she frowned. "Wait! Come back!" Before remembering why exactly she was in the dumpster, Annabeth clambered out of it and chased after the bird. "Come back!"

The Cyclops was grinning over her. "Time for dinner!"

Annabeth steadied herself to attack, but the owl took care of it on its own. All it did was fly quickly toward the monster and, immediately, the monster cowered in the corner and fled.

"Well apparently that monster is not nearly as brave as he should have been," said Annabeth. The owl began to fly briskly down the alley. "Wait!" Annabeth cried, running as fast as her little legs could carry her. "Wait don't – don't leave me! Come back!" The owl was flying faster now, and rounding corners just long enough for Annabeth to fear she would lose the owl. She ended up on a busy main sidewalk before she knew what she was doing and skidded to a halt. She'd been keeping to the shadows for days now – people who see a seven year old on their own in ratty pajamas tend to ask a lot of questions about parents and Annabeth was not going to be talking about that again.

She whipped her head around, trying to find the little owl again, and spotted it down the street. Again she took off, darting past a family of three who gave her an incredulous look. Annabeth stumbled into the dirt and the little redheaded girl stooped to help her up. "Hey, are you okay?" she asked, frowning. "Mommy, Daddy, this girl –"

"I'm fine!" shouted Annabeth, scrambling away. Annabeth didn't need help. Annabeth didn't WANT help. Annabeth didn't LIKE people. She was fine on her own.

She finally spotted the owl at the end of another alley, and she scrambled her way on top of a loading dock piled with stacks of sheet metal. The owl hooted once more, and disappeared.

"No!" sobbed Annabeth, crying for the first time since she ran away. "N-no, I need…I needed you."

She sat on top of metal and began to cry as hard as she had in years. She was so alone.

And then she quieted.

Someone else was walking past the alley.

With the speed of an alley cat, Annabeth dove beneath a sheet of metal and peered out between a crack. She couldn't really get a close look, but something was coming toward her. Some horrible, terrible face attached to a human body with – with another head.

And a big tall blonde boy.

She didn't move an inch – maybe if she was quiet enough they wouldn't hurt her or find her. But she silently held her hammer in her hand, just in case.

When the tin lifted, Annabeth flung her hammer with mind blowing force toward the blonde one and made to sprint away.

She would look back on this moment with almost a laugh. The little owl led her to the only people that side of Virginia who would have been able to help her.

She was safe, for now.

* * *

She was never alone

Annabeth, every Monday night since she arrived at camp, would sneak out of her cabin and curl up in the branches of Thalia's Pine, trying to keep herself from missing her friend and from missing. Even on the coldest nights, she would sit there, pretend the world was the same, that she'd never lost anyone, that her family loved her and just couldn't talk to her, that's all, just couldn't. She pretended they still loved her.

She wanted them to still love her.

She would pick up whatever book she'd been reading and cuddle under the blanket she had and fall asleep, waking with the sun and with just enough time to dart into the Athena cabin before anybody noticed that she was gone.

She never noticed the little owl that would perch a branch or two above her, keeping watch over the little girl as she slept,

It was her only way of feeling at home, until Chiron finally told her the true meaning of the secretive prophecy.

Then she couldn't sleep at all at night, until a certain son of a sea god arrived at camp and kept her on her toes so much that she got so exhausted by the end of the day she just passed out.

The little owl gave him a suspicious look the second Annabeth started getting close to him. But it never said anything.

* * *

She was never alone.

She was kneeling under the sky, under the agony of the universe, and she knew she wasn't alone. For the first time since she was tiny and under that tin, the owl appeared to her, whispering comforting hoots into her hear, giving her strength and letting her know she could do this.

"I am a daughter of Athena," she growled under the pressure, "I have the strength of mind and the strength of body to do this. I can do this."

The owl floated in front of her, giving her a visual focal point to keep her eyes on, something to keep her from losing her mind under the agony.

The owl turned its head after minutes, weeks, months, maybe even years of her agony, and hooted excitedly. For the first time, the little owl spoke words.

"Your days of pain are finished, my brave little soldier."

"Days?" gasped Annabeth. "Only days?"

The owl nodded. "But you have done so, so well. They are coming for you."

When the owl disappeared, Annabeth almost let loose the sob she'd been holding back for ages, but in place of the owl came a miraculous person before her. It was only when the person appeared next to her and in the twilight before she lost consciousness that Annabeth realized that Artemis had taken her place.

The owl appeared by her shoulder periodically for the next few days, and would say, "help is on the way," and "your friends will be here soon."

But she wouldn't remember any of the owl's words after the ordeal.

* * *

She was never alone.

Percy was gone. She'd finally realized that – that he was more than a friend, and it's like her punishment for choosing him instead of her mother's path of "no boys" destroyed him.

The little owl kept floating next to her, rubbing against her cheek when the worst of it hit her as she sat on the little beach. It would twist and turn in front of the water, trying to cheer her up, but all she could manage was a feeble, watery smile. The owl began to tap dance across the water like it always did as the sun set, and Annabeth couldn't keep herself smiling anymore. She was exhausted.

The next morning she would be tasked to burn his burial shroud, and she would bet money she would have the little owl next to her for that. She allowed it to hop into her hands, and she cuddled it for a moment, breathing steadily and preventing herself from losing heart.

She didn't sleep well that night. She crawled out of bed with a blanket and a book, like she would as a kid, and climbed into Thalia's Pine to try and sleep there.

She still couldn't.

The next morning was awful. It took every ounce of effort for Annabeth to drag herself to the ceremony.

The little owl was clearly invisible to others, which is why everyone else was so surprised when all they saw was Annabeth cry into her hands, turn over her shoulder, and then look up Half Blood Hill, and yell, "He's right there!"

The little owl had been the one to, against the better wishes of its corporeal component, let Annabeth know that Percy had come home. It had bumped her shoulder with its little wings and pointed up the hill for her to find him.

It followed her as she stormed up the hill and disappeared as she wrapped Percy in a bear hug that nearly knocked her breath out.

* * *

She was never alone.

She sure as hell felt alone, of course, because Hera's an absolute demon when it comes to Annabeth's life, and stole Percy. Looking for Seaweed brain and his idiotic amnesia brain, but it was weird not to have any clue what she was looking for. He was absolutely nowhere, and so was she. And now Nico had disappeared, so she had her boyfriend and her youngest friend off in la-la land where she had to find them. It's like nothing was easy for any of the half bloods, even after one war.

She made it to a cave about – she would guess – eight miles away from Camp Half Blood and couldn't make it any further. "Gods help me," she moaned, collapsing into her makeshift bed. "Where are you, you ridiculous boys?"

She was about to fall asleep when an Iris message came in. "Yo, Annabeth," said Leo with a bright wave, "guess what's done!"

"I know, Leo," she said exhausted. "You fixed that funky glitch with the steering and now the default is 'go straight' instead of 'spin in a circle until Leo hurls all over my shoes."

He had the grace to look embarrassed. "Well, look, it's not my fault. It just sort of…Happened. You understand. Right? But not only that, the ship is done! We're ready when you are. Anyway come back as soon as you can, right?"

"I'm eight miles away and it's," she checked the watch on her wrist, "nearly eleven at night. Not to say that I can't take care of myself, but I'd really not have to knife some mind numbingly stupid mortal for trying to attack me."

"It'd be their fault."

"It would be, but it's an effort I don't want to have to deal with."

Leo pouted, looking absolutely ridiculous. "But we want to be able to leave tomorrow!"

She sighed and slipped out the pocket knife she always kept on her ever since she turned sixteen and the first creepy man tried to grab her on the street. She'd walked away and he'd crawled away probably castrated, but she'd rather have a legitimate weapon just in case she had a twisted ankle and couldn't judo flip the person or something. "I'm on my w-w-" she yawned, "way."

She stood up and looked around, trying to spot something that would give her information as to where the heck she was.

That's when the little owl she'd seen back that night she cried on the beach when Percy had briefly disappeared came back.

It flew over toward her and landed on her outstretched hand. "Hello again. Ready to help me out, pal?"

It nodded enthusiastically, and she followed it with new strength. The streets of the city weren't particularly safe, but even with the exhaustion and the feeling of eyes on her every step she walked, no one came anywhere near her. She had the little owl to keep her strength up, and within 5 hours she was back at camp.

"Annabeth!" cried Chiron. "You're – oh, thank the Gods."

The old centaur wrapped her in a tight hug, and the little owl appeared before her for one more second, as if to say, "and you are now in safe hands."

"Thank you," whispered Annabeth, but just quiet enough for no one else to hear her. "Let's get to work, shall we? Show me the newly finished boat."

* * *

She was never alone.

Her little owl friend was with her as she put on her wedding dress. She wanted to dress alone, didn't want to have anyone there with her as she saw herself for the last few moments she was still a Miss.

She and Percy would be the Chase-Jacksons, and it was going to be great. She just had to get through the wedding first, and there was nothing that could convince her that nothing would go wrong.

The owl nudged one curl of hair that wouldn't stay in place across her shoulder and snuggled into her shoulder like it had done so many years before.

"Thanks, owl pal," muttered Annabeth, looking at herself in the mirror. "I clean up pretty good, don't I?"

The owl nodded, and Annabeth adjusted a curl or two that were making the decision to not stay in the silver owl hairpin that pinned the little braid to the side of her head.

There was a knock on the door. "Annabeth!" called Rachel. "It's a certain someone's time to get married to a certain lunatic!"

"I'm going to tell Percy you called him a lunatic," said Nico. Annabeth opened the door to see him checking himself out in the mirror. He looked good, but Nico, ever since his growth spurt when he was eighteen had a field day with tuxedos.

"Oh, stop flirting with yourself, Narcissus," said Rachel, rolling her eyes and pulling on Nico's arm. "You're best man. You're supposed to be in the Poseidon cabin with Percy, making sure he doesn't wet himself with excitement."  
"Aren't I supposed to think the groom'll run off?" Nico asked.

Rachel scoffed. "Please. Percy's been excited for this day since he was, like, thirteen. The only way he'd run off is if he were chasing after Annabeth."

"It's true," she said.

The two of them laughed. "You ready to make your way over to the garden next to the strawberry fields?" Rachel asked, holding out her hand. "Piper, Hazel and Reyna are waiting outside this cabin to start the procession."

"Is no an acceptable answer?" she asked.

Rachel opened the door to Piper and Reyna, who looked ready to pull me out of the room if need be.

"Alrighty then I'm going," Annabeth said. She promptly caught part of her shoe on the step and would have face planted into a potted plant if Piper and Hazel hadn't hoisted her up.

"And this is why I picked demigods for my bridesmaids." As she walked toward the fields, she chanced a look over her shoulder. The little owl smiled back at her and then dissipated.

Unexpectedly, the wedding went off without a hitch. Grover officiated the ceremony beautifully, and his littlest nymph daughter, Maple, scattered leaves and cherry blossoms across the aisle. Nico didn't accidentally lose the rings and Rachel kept the scatterbrained (for once) bride from losing it when a slightly hungover Leo tripped over the hem of Piper's dress and tore a slit in it to her knee right before they were about to walk down the aisle. Rachel had a moment of sheer genius when she rapidly sewed the hem inside the dress like it was on purpose, and it looked even better than it had before.

Athena, Poseidon, Mrs. Jackson, and Annabeth's whole mortal family was there, and Annabeth actually found herself a little disappointed that nothing had attacked them during the ceremony, reception, or honeymoon. She'd wanted to show how much she could kick ass in a full-length strapless silk gown. She'd have to wait for Jason and Piper's wedding to kick that one off.

Percy wrapped his arms around her waist. "Hello, Mrs. Chase-Jackson," he said as they stood in their brand new apartment.

"Hello, Mr. Chase-Jackson," said Annabeth. She pressed a kiss to her lips. "We made it."

"Made what?"

She pretended to be thinking. "Oh, I don't know, maybe just two wars, countless battles, you being kidnapped for eight months, and a wedding in which Leo, Nico and Rachel had way more input than would be good for anyone's sanity."

"So a normal life."

Annabeth laughed. "Of course," she said, cuddling into Percy's chest. "An average, perfect, normal life."

Percy pressed a kiss to the top of Annabeth's head. "And I'd never ask for it any other way."

* * *

She was never alone.

Percy was home now. Home, which was with her in New York City in the best apartment they could afford, since building design and architecture weren't the most consistent paying jobs ever and Mr. Save-The-World Jackson as a Fire Fighter wasn't making much bank either.

Percy cuddled up to her and kissed her shoulder. "I'm glad I'm back, Wise Girl," he murmured into her shoulders. "I missed my girls."

"Well next time then tell them to have the drills in New York instead of in LA," Annabeth said, trying to hold back her laughter. "But really, it's alright. Maya and I took care of each other while you were gone. But it was her first real weekend without decent cooking, and I don't think she enjoyed that too much."

Percy wrapped an arm around Annabeth's waist, drawing her toward him. She flipped over to find herself bumping into his nose. "Hello," she said, unable to keep from smiling.

He pressed a firm kiss to her lips. "Hi."

Annabeth this time kissed Percy, deepening it and rolling on top of him, grinning. "Well this is possibly the best welcome home surprise ever."

"Oh please," laughed Annabeth, brushing the tips of her fingers across Percy's collarbone, "like this is a surprise."

He laughed and flipped her over again, kissing her neck, when the baby – or, perhaps, now toddler monitor – made a noise like a giggling baby.

"Maya?" asked Percy. "What is she…?"

"I've got it, Percy," Annabeth said as she kissed his forehead. "You need to get some sleep."

She rolled out of bed and slid on a pair of slippers Rachel had fabric-painted with owls and padded her way to their daughter's room.

Her heart almost stopped when she saw it – the tiny silver own landing on the side of her daughter's crib, doing flips and dances to entertain the little two year old, making Maya grin broadly and clap her chubby little hands. Hanging by the door, she kept an eye on the little bird, watching its movements, when she sensed someone behind her.

Rapidly she turned, but it was only her mother.

"Mom?" she said, surprised. "I…Hello?"

"You're wondering about the owl," said Athena matter-of-factly.

Annabeth's brow furrowed. "Well, of course," she said, slightly on her guard, "it followed me around for a good many years until the Giant War finished. And now, after nearly twelve years I see it again. In my daughter's bedroom. At night. Forgive me for being a little confused."

Athena observed her daughter for a moment. "And you've wondered where it came from since you were a small child in running from monsters and hiding in dumpsters."

"Of course."

Athena offered her daughter a small smile. "It was me, of course, you silly girl. I watched over you, guided you to safety. Pushed you the extra mile when you thought you could go no further."

"And you could never just appear to me?" Annabeth asked. "You couldn't have come to me as my mother? I thought I was crazy from the time I was seven! I thought I had been hallucinating!"

Athena sighed. "Well then you hadn't thought things through properly."

Annabeth leaned against the wall and dropped her forehead in her hand. "I was seven, Mother." She took a deep breath. "I just…Why are you here right now? And why is…Your owl here in Maya's bedroom?"

"Can you forgive a woman for wanting to watch over her first grandchild in millennia?"

Annabeth froze for a moment. It made sense.

"You're taking care of her when we aren't there," she said.

Athena nodded. "No one ever needs to be alone."

Before she realized what she was doing, Annabeth was actually hugging her mother. It was a little awkward for both of them, but needed.

"Thank you for understanding, Annabeth," Athena murmured. "And – and I'm so glad that you and P-Percy have such a lovely life."

"Once we got away from the monsters it sort of felt like everything was a breeze," Annabeth quipped. Athena laughed.

"Well, I must return to Olympus. Summer solstice coming up and the like. Have to make sure no one chops another family member up with a scythe or eats their children. But my owl will remain, if that's alright with you, Annabeth."

Annabeth nodded and looked over to the little green eyed, blonde haired girl playing with the owl in her crib. "Of course it is. And Maya seems to love it."

"That she does."

Athena left Annabeth alone in the hallway, and Annabeth walked into Maya's bedroom. "Hello, little one," said Annabeth, leaning over the crib. "How are you?"

The owl floated over next to Annabeth's hand, and Maya reached up, as if trying to pull herself up next to her mother.

Annabeth leaned down and picked Maya up, cradling her in one arm. "Do you like the little birdie, Maya? It's called an owl!"

"Oowuh," tested Maya. "Ow-lul. Mommy, iss hard word."

"Yes, it is, lovely one, but you'll figure it out with a little practice." She touched the tip of Maya's little nose with the tip of her finger, and the little girl giggled, sending her curly hair haywire.

"Mommy, that tickles!"

Annabeth kissed her little girl on the forehead. "Yes, and perhaps you and your birdie friend can play tomorrow, because it is late and you, my love, need to sleep."

"Night night, Mommy," said Maya, burrowing into Annabeth's long hair. "Love you."

"I love you too, water baby."

Maya cuddled up with her little stuffed seahorse – the one she didn't go anywhere without, the one that Percy swears up and down looks way more like a hippocampus – and was asleep in moments.

"And if only I could do that," said Annabeth, chuckling a bit. "Sleep well, baby."

She walked into her bedroom, where Percy groggily sat up. "Whassit?" he said, bleary eyed. "Heard you talking. Don't have another son of Poseidon in the house for when I'm gone, do you?"

Annabeth laughed and slid under the covers. "Nope. Just talking to the little giggler in her bedroom. She's safe and sound in her bed."

"Course she is," said Percy, snuggling up and pressing his lips into her hair. "She's with two of the most powerful demigods in history, both of whom are her parents."

"Not just us," Annabeth said, "I think she'll always have someone taking care of her."

Percy chuckled. "How do you know that?"

Annabeth gave a knowing smile and wrapped her arms around Percy's waist. "Oh, nothing. A little birdie told me."


End file.
